The present invention relates to a brush head of a toothbrush having a brush section for brushing teeth, which is attached to the distal end of a gripping handle, particularly to a brush head of a toothbrush which can reduce portions to be left unbrushed even when intricate rows of teeth are brushed with it.
Toothbrushes each having a gripping handle and a brush head supported at the distal end of the handle are commercially available, and they come in different types in terms of the shape of the handle, the size of the head, the stiffness of bristles implanted in the head, etc. For example, there are those having curved handles, those having small heads and those in which stiffness of bristles to be implanted in the heads are varied depending on the position, so that users can select optimum ones in accordance with use conditions including the mouth size and the like.
However, dentition including occlusion differs greatly from person to person, so that even if one selects an optimum one from the various kinds of toothbrushes as described above, it is sometimes difficult to brush ones teeth sufficiently with it.
More specifically, since the shape of the oral cavity differs from person to person, there is a limit for a single toothbrush to clean ones teeth entirely, and some teeth cannot be brushed sufficiently depending on the positions and portions of them. Thus, one needs some additional brushes including interdental brushes, disadvantageously.
In addition, the toothbrushes of the prior art involve a problem that the brush applies pressure unevenly to the teeth to be unable to achieve efficient brushing. More specifically, in a brush head 101 of a conventional toothbrush, when bristle bundles 102 are applied to the surface of a tooth T, as shown in FIG. 21, there occur a portion T1 to which the bristle bundles 102 are applied strongly and a portion T2 to which the bristle bundles 102 are applied softly. Thus, the portion T2 remains insufficiently brushed to be causative of dental caries.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a brush head of a toothbrush capable of brushing teeth without undergoing influences of conditions including dentition, which differ from person to person.
In order to solve the problems described above, the brush head according to the present invention was accomplished considering a constitution which enables efficient brushing of teeth by applying necessary pressures to necessary portions of the teeth and no excessive pressure to portions requiring less pressure. The constitution of the brush head of a toothbrush is as given below.
That is, the brush head of a toothbrush has a gripping handle and a brush section for brushing teeth attached to a distal end of the handle; the brush section containing a brush base having bristle bundles implanted therein; wherein the brush section is divided into at least two brush segments that are arranged along an axis of the toothbrush; and the brush segments are connected to each other with a resilient resin material, a rubber material, a spring, a rubber ligament, a magnet or other restoring means which permits restorable torsional and bending deformations in all directions with respect to the toothbrush axis.
The brush head having the above constitution undergoes resilient movement freely to detour obstructive protrusions if present to give a toothbrush which can brush teeth without fail to the depth of every recess.
The brush base can be formed easily as an integral part by using a resilient material which permits restorable torsional and bending deformations in all directions with respect to the toothbrush axis.
The restoring means is provided at each end with a mounting/dismounting mechanism to be removably fixed to the brush base, enabling replacement of the brush if worn out.
The mounting/dismounting mechanism is a threaded portion which is removably screwed into a threaded hole defined in the brush base along the toothbrush axis or is a fitting piece, which is retractably fitted into a bore defined in the brush base in the axial direction of the toothbrush and has a rectangular cross section or other shapes permitting advancing and retracting movements only; and an engaging mechanism is located between the fitting piece and the brush base, the engaging mechanism being a resilient claw which removably engages the fitting piece with the brush base, thus securing replaceability.
The brush head further has a pivot shaft for pivotally supporting the brush segments with respect to the toothbrush axis, and the pivot shaft is attached to the handle, thus securing the action of the brush head to the distal end under two-dimensional deformation.
The brush base has a bristled portion formed separate from a main body of the brush base, and a screw engagement mechanism, a fitting mechanism or a mounting/dismounting mechanism of other constitutions for removably locking the bristled portion against the brush base is interposed between them, thus enabling minimum replacement of parts depending on the degree of wearing or contamination.
The brush head having a passage communicating from the handle to the brush base and opens between the bristle bundles facilitates cleaning of the toothbrush.
A ball joint having a lock nut interposed between the brush section and the handle enables setting of the angle of the brush section depending on the use site.
Various types of handles can selectively be used by interposing a mounting/dismounting mechanism between the brush section and the handle.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings illustrated by way of examples the principles of the invention.